Language Of Flowers
by AxoPine
Summary: In which Levi is a florist, Alice buys flowers for her sick sister, and somewhere along the way they fall in love. Modern AU.


A/N: Yes, I am aware that Levi is Alice's father but in this fic they're not blood related. Also, there are lesser fics about Levi than I expected. *cries*. He's smexy. So is Oswald. And maybe Break. I guess all the guys in PH are. Also, Rufus x Alice would be an interesting pairing. I'd love to see someone attempt that. If there's a Levi x Alice, why not a Rufus x Alice? xD Well, I'll end it here. _I don't own PH, it belongs to Jun Mochizuki._ And without further ado, I present to you the first ever Levice fic!

* * *

Spring had arrived. The cold winter days were long gone and the flowers were in full bloom. The cool breeze, cloudless sky, lush trees and bushes and the aromatic fragrance of the flowers – this was what Levi loved about spring. It was refreshing – after weeks and months of a dull-colored winter, the following spring enchanted him with the vibrant shades of foliage, filling his life and soul with color.

He met her sometime in the beginning of spring, and she was quite like the season itself – breath taking, captivating and radiant. Walking into the store with a bright smile on her face and a spring in her steps. Browsing through the vast selection of flowers with a scrutinizing yet appreciative gaze, as if she truly enjoyed the beauty of them.

"Excuse me, which flowers are appropriate as a gift for someone sick?" Her voice was melodious and soothing to the ears – exactly how he thought it would be.

Levi got up from the counter and walked towards her, stopping a few steps away. He leaned down, gently picking a bunch of baby blue hydrangeas. Then he straightened his back and walked over to the other side, carefully selecting another bunch of flowers – white peonies.

"Hydrangeas for perseverance and peonies for healing. Shall I wrap them into a bouquet for you?" Receiving a nod in response, he took a piece of gray wrapping paper and swiftly arranged the flowers, tying a ribbon around the stalks to secure it. The bouquet was beautiful. White, blue and gray – they mixed together well and complimented each other.

He took out a card and a pen. "To whom is it addressed to?" He inquired, turning to look at her.

"Alyss, A-L-Y-S-S. And to spare you the trouble of asking my name, it's Alice. The one from Alice in Wonderland," she said, grinning cheekily.

Levi smirked. This girl was quite the amusing one.

She slapped a fifty-dollar note onto the counter and grabbed her bouquet. "Keep the change," she said, walking to the entrance of the store. And with a final wave, she was out before he could blink.

'What an interesting little sprite,' Levi thought. He looked forward to the next time they'd meet.

* * *

She'd come once a week, inquiring about the different flowers and their respective meanings. He'd look forward to their half hour sessions; it was one of the joys in his life. The second time she came, he told her his name.

"Levi."

His body tingled at how his name rolled off her tongue perfectly, how it sounded so smooth and pleasant when she uttered it, and he thought to himself that he wouldn't mind listening to her call his name again and again.

They made an agreement – for each time she visited he would teach her the facts of three different flowers; their names, meanings, origins; anything he knew about them. And in return, she'd tell him something about herself. After five weeks, this was what he had gathered – she was eighteen this year, was currently studying medicine, had a fondness for rabbits, reached a height of 150cm (He laughed at that and she scowled, it wasn't funny dammit!) and her twin sister Alyss was hospitalized because of her ill health.

Seven weeks had passed, summer had arrived, and he realized that he was always longing for her presence – her smile, her laugh, and her voice – everything about her was just so… _likeable_. And whenever she was about to leave he'd feel his heart ache, feel the urge to reach out and stop her, but he would always resist the temptation. And once she was out of his sight, he felt so _empty_ inside and he'd yearn for her companionship and eagerly await her next visit.

This, he realized, this was love. But maybe love was too strong a word; he'd only met her, what, seven or eight times? Nonetheless, he was attracted to her, and he couldn't deny it.

* * *

Three weeks. It had been three weeks since she had last came. Levi wouldn't mind if it was a week or two, but three? That was kind of pushing it. Did she forget? Surely not, she didn't forget the last seven times. Maybe she got tired of him? She didn't strike him as that kind of person – the type that wouldn't bother with someone once they got bored them.

He sighed. It was unbearable, waiting for her everyday, hoping that she might come the next day. There was a chance that she might never come again, and he felt a pang of sadness at that possibility. Levi sighed yet again. He'd give her one more week. One more week before he gave up on waiting – gave up on _her_.

She came the next day. Eyes bloodshot with dark eye bags underneath, shoulders sagging and smile replaced with a frown. The light in her eyes was gone, not a trace of it left. Her attitude had done a complete turn. Seeing her in that state was heart-rending.

She approached him silently and leaned against the counter with her back facing him, staring at the ground with her lifeless eyes. Her gaze was blank, void of any emotion. None of them attempted conversation, the only sound being the tick of the clock hanging on the wall.

Levi waited. Ten minutes passed. He stood up, still not uttering a word, and walked around the counter, his feet padding on the ground lightly and hardly making a sound. Then he hesitated for a few seconds in front of her, before leaning down and gingerly wrapping his arms around her body, enclosing her in a warm embrace.

 _Tick_

 _Tick_

 _Tick_

And the tears fell. One by one they flowed down her cheeks like a river and dripped onto his shirt. He awkwardly rubbed his hand up and down her back, and a sniffle was heard before she reached out and hugged him back. She wept silently with the occasional sniffle and he held her closer, not caring if his shirt would be sodden with salty tears.

For five minutes she cried. And once she had calmed down, she poured it all out of her system – how her sister's condition worsened three weeks ago and how she died less than a week later, her fall into depression and hence why she didn't visit him.

A part of him was relieved that she had not abandoned him; another felt guilty for being able to think about that when here she was, mourning the loss of her beloved sister.

 _I'm a horrible person_.

He sighed and willed those thoughts away, proceeding to pat her back whilst she continued to disclose the details of the last three weeks. Right now, he should be giving his all to comfort her. Those thoughts could wait until later.

Once she was done, she bought a bouquet of red hydrangeas. When he asked her for the name of the person it was addressed to, she laughed (It wasn't as lively as her previous laughs, but hey, at least she wasn't crying) and took the pen from him, her fingers brushing pass his hand.

"For myself," she said with a forlorn smile, scribbling down the words: _To Alice, From Alice, Hope you feel better soon!_

He seized the pen from her and jokingly wrote down " _Suicide isn't the answer!_ " It earned him a smack on the arm from her and a few chuckles and laughs from them both. He grinned. Her light was starting to shine again.

* * *

It was an autumn afternoon, and the trees were in the midst of shedding their yellow leaves in preparation for the chilly winter. She resumed her weekly visits after that day; whenever he recalled his bold actions his heart rate would accelerate and a small smile would find its way onto his face.

The glass door separating the store from the outside world opened, a sudden burst of noise filling into the room – the sound of vehicles driving past, the chatter of passers-by and many other noises of different pitches and volume. He looked up from the book he was reading (Sure, he was running a store and he might give off a bad impression as a staff, but he _owned_ this store so technically he was the boss and no one could fire him) and grinned, waving to her lazily before he turned back to his book.

From the corner of his eye he could see her flutter around the store, glancing at each breed of flower before moving on to the next. His business instincts tingled and he opened his mouth to inquire if she needed his assistance but he paused, concluding that she would ask for help if she required it.

 _Ding!_

Alerted by the call bell, he looked up from the book in his hand and saw her waiting in front of the counter, a selection of a dozen red roses in her outstretched hand. He gently handled the flowers and started wrapping them with the standard brown wrapping paper.

"Wait! I want it wrapped in your finest wrapping paper and ribbon!"

He raised an eyebrow at her sudden outburst but did as she requested, handing her the bouquet of neatly arranged roses once he was done. After he received the payment, the both of them just stood there quietly. Feeling a sense of déjà vu, he wondered if she was going to cry again, a frown forming on his face at that possibility.

She held the bouquet and proudly presented it to him. "I did my research. Well, not that I needed to. It's almost common knowledge" she begun. "Roses signify love," she proclaimed smugly. He raised an eyebrow. Like she said, it was common knowledge that roses signify love, so why did she look so smug? Levi mentally chuckled.

"I've liked you for a while now, and I don't think that I'll ever be able to stop liking you for a long time. So, will you marr- I mean, will you go out with me?"

Her cheeks flushed and all the confidence she had dissipated. He stared at her, his eyes widened slightly, and a few seconds of silence passed. Then a wide grin stretched across his face.

"Of course, my beautiful flower."

She smiled exuberantly and leaned across the counter to hug him, breathing in his scent and the slight fragrance of flowers. Well, she was still in the midst of her studies and that may take up a lot of her time and they might run into a few problems here and there, but honestly she didn't really care right now. Their love would surely blossom.

* * *

After finishing this, I felt as if it kinda lacked something, but I re-read it a few times and I still couldn't figure it out. I'd love it if you guys could spend a little of your time to leave a review. Thanks for reading!


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